Various wheeled trucks, carts, dollies and other similar contrivances have been devised since the invention of the wheel. Such devices include hand trucks such as those having a flat platform portion on which a cargo item to be transported is place and to which one or more vertically disposed frame members extending upwardly from the ground are attached which provide a handle means by which a user may grasp the device and push or pull it along a flat surface.
In the case of stage show performances, such as concerts, plays, and other productions, traveling road shows typically bring their own equipment to the site of the show. A mobile road show thus requires the placement of various pieces of electronic equipment including sound mixers, light boards, amplifiers, speakers, and other equipment known in the art for enhancing the quality of the production. Typically, such equipment is contained in a tractor trailer or other freighting means and is delivered to the site of the show. The equipment must be unloaded and then set into place for the performance, and afterwards must be re-loaded into the tractor trailer or other conveyance for transportation to the next show site. Thus, it is a fairly labor intensive endeavor to repeatedly load and unload stage equipment, and personnel generally referred to as “roadies” are employed for such equipment set ups and take downs.
The prior art fails to provide any device upon which may be loaded a plurality of stage equipment devices, which may also be wheeled to a desired location at a show site and the equipment left on the device during the performance, and simply wheeled away when the show is over. The present invention provides such a device. Furthermore, a device according to the invention permits placement of a plurality of stage equipment devices as an ensemble in a desired location requiring fewer square feet of surface area for the equipment, thus optimizing space utilization. A device according to a preferred form of the invention enables appurtenant equipment such as: cords, footswitches and other effects to ride on-board during equipment transportation of musical amplification equipment from one location to another. This aspect eliminates lost equipment and reduces set-up time. In addition, cords used during performances do not have to be disconnected, which facilitates expedient and organized set-up. A device according to the invention may also act as a stand for performances, and eliminates redundant devices required to elevate amplification equipment. These and other advantages of the present invention shall become apparent to one of ordinary skill after reading and understanding this specification and the claims appended hereto.